


Can I still love you?

by Poitre_4



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Final Haikyuu Quest, Angst, Blood and Violence, Demon Oikawa Tooru, Everyone Needs A Hug, Fluff too At Some Point.... I guess.... maybe, Hurt/Comfort, Knight Iwaizumi Hajime, M/M, Minor Character Death, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:27:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26646019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poitre_4/pseuds/Poitre_4
Summary: Iwaizumi Hajime thought he knew what he was doing when he abandoned his king and joined the Liberation Army.Now he has to face the consequences of his actions with the pervasive knowledge that in that cold and unforgiving castle he left not only the great and mighty Grand Demon King but also Oikawa Tooru, his best friend.Is it too late now to save Oikawa's soul along with the world?
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi, Yachi Hitoka/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Kudos: 25





	1. Loyalty and Betrayal

**Author's Note:**

> Heyyy  
> I really hope you will like this fanfiction. Since it is my first one and English is not my first language I'm afraid there will be some mistakes, please if you see them let me know so I can correct.  
> Enjoy,  
> Poitre4

There were many legends about the Demon King: he was said to have hundreds of years most of which he had spent in the caves of a mountain, improving his powers to take over the world. For someone, he had been nursed with human blood since birth, raised eating hearts still warm from children's chest. Others said he was the one who created all the demons impregnating snakes and oxen. Every rumor was more preposterous than the former one, but they all had one thing in common: the Grand King of the Demonic Dimension was always pictured as a heartless creature vowed to destruction.

Iwaizumi was mildly amused and utterly disgusted by this "surely creative slanders" as Oikawa liked to call them. Differently from popular beliefs the "Demon King" wasn't this dangerous and cursed dark being created to exterminate the human race, he was an overgrown toddler with a huge ego. Much to Iwaizumi's annoyance, who used to joke saying that an evil king would be very less bothersome, Oikawa was always whiny and so lazy that he wouldn't anything without Hajime reminding him at least three times. Furthermore the knight, having spent the last thirteen years watching Oikawa's back, was pretty sure that he hadn't more than eighteen years.

He could still remember the day that they first met, when a five years old Tooru got lost in the Human Dimension after running away from palace and a young Hajime found him in the woods, crying and covered in mud.

When he brought him back, Oikawa's father wanted to erase his memory and send him back home, but Tooru insisted not only in keeping his memories intact, but also in letting him coming back whenever he pleased, and so this peculiar friendship started. At the beginning Hajime was reluctant to go back in that creepy place with horned people, but curiosity won over him and in less than one month he was back, playing hide and seek with the young prince. If Iwaizumi had to imagine his ideal life, babysitting a Demon King wouldn't be his first choice, but that pouty and clever little thing had a special place in his heart from day one.

It wasn't like he didn't know that Oikawa was actually very powerful, probably the most powerful being of both the dimensions, but he simply never had any reason to be afraid of him.

Until that day at least...

As he watched the village burn and listened to the crazy laughter of the Grand King of the Demonic Dimension mixed with the desperate cries of the villagers in an eerily wicked symphony, Iwaizumi asked himself whether all those rumors weren't so wrong in the end. Maybe The Grand King was indeed the evil being everyone feared, maybe he was the fool who was too blinded by his affections to see the monster behind the cheeky smile and the whiny pout. Hajime took a step back, eyes wide and full of horror in front of his friend's deeds displayed before him like a foul painting stained in gore.

All the screams and the shrieks resounded in his hears like accusations of his complicity in the slaughter of innocent men women and children, each one a blow to his heart. "No" he wanted to scream "No, it's not my fault... I.. I didn't know, I couldn't imagine...I" but nothing came out of his mouth while he watched silently, in shook: this wasn't their dream! This wasn't the same future they spent whole nights chattering under the covers about, till they fell asleep in the morning! This wasn't what he wanted! Then Oikawa turned over to him smiling like all of this was just a leisurely walk in the palace's garden and not a massacre of innocents: "Do you like it Iwa-chan? We will rule over the whole world together, both the Human and the Demonic Dimension! As we always dreamed! Isn't it beautiful?" he asked too blinded by his own madness to see the horrified look on his first knight's face.

Iwaizumi felt like crying: this was not his best friend, this was not the man he made an oath to protect, this was not his king.

They fought that evening, alone in front of the throne that was breaking their friendship apart. As Iwaizumi entered the hall he saw Oikawa who sat on it without a care in the world, as if he didn't just slay more than a hundred people for the childish whim of showing off his power, Hajime flinched. 

“You wanted to talk Iwa-chan? What's wrong?” the king asked looking down to his best friend troubled expression.

Iwaizumi's eyes narrowed “You seriously don't see anything wrong in what you did?” he asked fairly surprised. 

Oikawa tilted his head like a curious animal. In any other circumstance the knight would have found it amusing and even cute but right now it was unnatural and spooky, so much that it sent shivers down his spine “You killed hundreds of innocents for no reason!”

Oikawa's eyes hardened but his voice remained sickeningly sweet while he left his seat to walk down the stairs “I had a reason: they were hiding many soldiers of the Liberation Army, I couldn't permit them to continue their foolish, pathetic excuse of a rebellion” 

Iwaizumi scoffed “A reason so stupid it can't even be considered one!” it wasn't rare for Iwaizumi to insult Oikawa or his plans but the exasperated fondness that usually filled his gaze was nowhere to be found “I was there Shittykawa, right next to you, I saw it with my eyes: there were fifteen people at most with a sword in their hands and half of them didn't even seem able to wield it correctly! Someone may have hidden them in their barn, was that a reason to kill them all?” 

Oikawa's face was still surprised and concerned by his knight accusations “I fail to see the problem, I've seen your sword pierce the flesh of thousands of soldiers without the slightest hesitation on your side, how is this any different? Treason is treason Iwa-chan, I can't let my subjects think their king is so weak that he can't control them” he tried to reach for him but Hajime slapped his hand away

“There were women and children there, did they commit treason too?” 

Oikawa's tone was harsh now: “I did not enjoy wiping off an entire village, Iwa-chan but I deemed it necessary, this is as much as you are allowed to know, do not question your king's choices” Iwaizumi saw red for a second “What the hell Oikawa, what the actual hell! Don't put the mighty king's facade on with me, it doesn't fucking work” he yanked an unbothered Tooru by the collar screaming “''Did not enjoy it?'' You were laughing like a fucking psycho!” 

Oikawa snorted with a bored expression removing Iwaizumi's hands from his clothes “A demon's magic is fed through others pain, it was like a feast for my inner self, you don't have to like the cow being slaughtered to enjoy the steak” 

Iwaizumi shook his head incredulous: “You disgust me” Tooru laughed humorlessly “Now, now Iwa-chan don't be such a prude, girls won't like you otherwise"

If Hajime took offense by the comment he did not show it when, with an atypical coldness on his features, usually set ablaze with the rage at this point of the conversation, he said “How dare you claim to be realizing our dream? How dare you turn the plan of two innocent children in a massacre for your own selfish goals? You betrayed me, you betrayed us both!” 

Oikawa's eyes turned red, now he was enraged, he stalked towards Iwaizumi “I betrayed you?!? We wanted the world and I'm obtaining it for both of us! You are not naive nor stupid Iwaizumi, you couldn't be seriously convinced that we could do it without bloodshed or getting out of it with our hands clean! It's war, and the war comes with a price, one that I'm ready to pay! You talk of betrayal while you can't accept dirty your conscience for our dream! It was you who betrayed me, your best friend, your king! Where does your loyalty lay?!” Oikawa stopped in his track in front of him with ragged breath, disheveled hair and eyes wide with madness.

Hajime didn't lift his eyes to meet the king's gaze when he mumbled “In my king” Oikawa smile was smug while he turned around toward his throne convinced that he won the debate “But he died today along with his expendable subjects” turning swiftly Tooru saw his wide back as the other stalked out of the hall.

Passing a hand trough his hair Oikawa sighed heavily before pointing his eyes toward the ceiling to prevent any tear from falling.

The day right after, Tooru Oikawa bursted into his first knight's chambers with a large smile on his face "Rise and shine Iwa-chan! It's already sooooo late and we have sooo many things to do! I reflected on what you said yesterday and I think we can find a compromise if we..." His smile faltered when he realized the room was completely empty "…talk about it.” he slowed down looking around confused “Iwa-chan?" he called hesitantly, moving a few steps forward only to stop dead in his track in front of the bed. 

He tried to convince himself that his Hajime was just training in the forest as he usually did in the weekends, although it was Monday, that he would come back any second scolding him for entering in his room without asking and smiling at him when Oikawa would whine for his prolonged absence. Yet it was difficult to ignore how the room was not only missing his only inhabitant but also everything that he possessed. The only thing that remained in the room, carefully placed in the center of the bed, like a dreadful message, was the Dragon-eye Stone Oikawa gifted to Iwaizumi the day he became king, a week after his father's death.

Tooru could perfectly remember the day: he could see himself sitting on the edge of his bed, the bed he would have to leave to move in the king's chambers, twisting and squeezing his own hands, too anxious to do anything else.

Even though it was his fifteen birthday he couldn't bring himself to be happy, too scared of all the duties his young shoulders would have to carry. He hadn't even given himself the time to mourn his father and now he was replacing him, despite the anxiety that covered him in cold sweat he felt like he was inside a bubble, nothing touched him or bothered him, he was sure that at some point the bubble would burst and everything would come to him all together breaking him down, but that would be a problem for another moment. 

During the whole ceremony the voices came to muffled and distorted, the colors and the figures just a distant memory, the only thing he could see clearly was a human boy who came just for the occasion, a worried expression marrying his features in front of his best friend's lost look. In the end, after the coronation, and the delivery of the gifts for the new king, he brought Iwaizumi in the council room to give him a gift of his own, it was one of the few times he got to see Iwa-chan crying. 

He could still see his eyes full of tears while he told him: " The Dragon-eye Stone symbolizes family and trust Iwa-chan, and you are my only remaining family now! I can't do it alone Iwa-chan, be my first knight, fight for me, fight with me! And I shall give you the world!" He could remember Hajime's smile while he accepted his new role with joy saying that he would have treasured that present forever, as a reminder of his promise to always protect his king, his best friend.

Seeing it, left behind like a hindering memory more than a precious possession was a far too hurtful sight for Oikawa's heart. He dropped to his knees to, legs too weak to support his weight, looking at his own reflection on the levigated surface of the stone he whispered to it as if it could bring the message to his missing friend: "Iwa-chan? Why? Why would you leave me Iwa-chan?You promised me Iwa-chan! I can change I swear! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Iwa-chan! Come back! I can't do it alone, come back please." he started rocking slowly bringing the stone to his chest and embracing himself, repeating like a mantra "Iwa-chan, Iwa-chan, come back Iwa-chan, come back" While tears steamed down his face he screamed at the top of his lungs "IWA-CHAAAAAAAN!"

His enraged and pained roar resonated in the whole kingdom bringing fear and pain in the heart of every listener. 

In front of an inter-dimensional gate somewhere in the woods Iwaizumi turned his head to face the palace in the distance one last time, while a tear slowly fell down his cheek, before turning to the portal and entering definitely the human dimension.

"Farewell Tooru"


	2. Kunimi Akira

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His eyes shot open, it wasn't a vivid memory  
> ...  
> All in all a mystery. Hinata shivered in excitement, he loved mysteries!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiii,  
> new chapter, I'm trying to update monthly but is rather difficoult since I'm not used to it.  
> Anyway I hope you enjoy and share your opinions with me, it really helps,  
> thank you

The shivering moon on the surface of the puddle shattered in waves as an uncaring foot stomped on it. 

Kenma looked up, at the sky that peeked trough the treetops, he knew it was too late to be out, it wasn't wise nor smart to let his emotions get over him, but he couldn't help the grim look on his face every time he recalled the events that occurred that same afternoon, he needed time to think and he wouldn't get it in the middle of their camp. 

He shook his head: he really didn't know what to do.

Kenma wasn't so keen on trusting people unless it was absolutely necessary. 

Shouyou always reprimanded him for it, saying that they needed allies and that he couldn't go on considering an enemy anyone who wasn't already part of their small group of friends. 

Which was wrong on many levels: first of all Kenma hardly considered friends the members of their poorly assembled team, they were mostly nuisances that Hinata liked and therefore adopted,… except Yamaguchi maybe: he was pretty cool, too bad he couldn't be convinced to leave the salty guy behind. 

Secondly, this wasn't actually how Kenma's criteria in the search for allies worked although he never bothered explaining this to his friend, he wouldn't understand. 

In fact if the young warrior ever were to discover that the mage could see people's auras, not only a shallow glimpse, like every well trained mage, but even its deepest and darkest corners, he would say something like: “Wow Kenma that's like super coolish, you really are that strong!?!?! Let's fight!” and Kenma would really like to avoid that. 

He actually despised this ability of his, gaining it hadn't been worth all the sacrifices he suffered, it was a curse as much as blessing, an eternal reminder of his sins, but he could admit it was more than useful when he needed to judge someone's good intentions. 

This was also the reason why he became friends with Shouyou at first sight: his aura was just so bright, like a little sun on earth, and he had been immediately attracted to it like iron to a magnet.

Unfortunately Shouyou's good heart made him naive, and now he brought back this... person, gushing on about how powerful he is and how strong, righteous: all in all the heart of a true knight 

Kenma scoffed at the memory: if only Hinata could see that heart like he did.

His aura was weird: as if it had been tampered by something, its color was quite off too, Kenma could imagine the original color to be a bright red, usually symbolic of a strong mind and a brave heart but its light has been dimmed and now it shone like a dying fire. 

He kicked a pebble on his path, frowning, deep in his thoughts. 

This man, this Kunimi Akira, was surely a menace, even if he couldn't quite point out why: he knew he was probably just paranoid but a dimmed aura was usually sign of a deep involvement with strong demons, he would know: his aura was no better.

Not all the people involved with demons were evil, not by definition at least, but still for his aura to be that dark he either made a deal with one or was cursed and neither was actually a good sign, “I don't need any more trouble with demons right now” he mumbled sighing. 

Unfortunately there was no way in hell he could change Shouyou's mind, he just had to wait Kageyama to return from Kitagawa, so they could just finally leave, and hope this Kunimi-san didn't intend on following them to the front.

He came to a stop in front of the lake. It was truly beautiful, for a moment all his thoughts flew away and he stood there, the wind gently caressing his hair and his closed eyelids.

He could recall when everything was just so easy: when magic was still just a game and not a weapon, when smiles were sincere and war seemed a tale of ancient times, not an everlasting reality. 

Before everything was ruined, when he could still feign ignorance, pretending he couldn't see the truth. He smiled, feeling like a little kid again after years, laughs of a long forgotten past ringing faintly in his hears.

His eyes shot open.

It wasn't a vivid memory: kid's laughs filled the clearing, getting louder and louder til his hears started bleeding. 

Then a well known hysterical laughter rung out in the middle of all the noise, from right behind him. 

His eyes widened while he started loosing consciousness, whispering a weak “Kuroo...” to the unforgiving night, suddenly quiet. 

<°> <°> <°> <°> <°> <°>

Exactly fourteen hours prior an excited redheaded guy was heading to the city humming an happy motif without a care in the world.

Hinata loved going downtown: there were so many colors, and voices, and strong opponents to duel with in the streets. 

Of course he would very much enjoy more going to the front where the Liberation Army was actually fighting, defeat all different kind of demons, since they were rumored to be really strong.

However every time he tried to convince his comrades, Kenma would just say “No we have to wait for Kageyama” with his usual dull tone; Tsukishima would make fun of him saying something extremely mean and offensive, and Yamaguchi would just laugh quietly behind his hand at his best friend's joke and go back to his painting. 

So Hinata learned fast enough that talking to them had no effect. He wanted to wait for Kageyama, but the guy was taking ages to come back and Shouyou was bored out of his mind: he spent his time sulking and fighting poor unaware pedestrians who he deemed strong enough to be worthy opponents. 

Having spent at least two months near this city, everybody who lived there knew of the weird happy little guy, who came everyday to challenge people to duels and won every single time, so there was always someone, ready to test himself through a fight, whenever he got into the main square. 

Today was no different: he got in the middle of the square, sat down cross legged on the pavement, closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable crowd of bystanders and challengers that usually filled his, otherwise dull, days. 

He didn't actually like being still and calm, waiting for something to happen, but Kenma always did it, saying it helped him with his concentration, and it looked sooo cool that he always wanted to give it a try. 

After two minutes of faking the “Kenma-cool-pose” he heard a voice right over him: “Are you the midget everyone talks about? The insanely good one?” Hinata looked above to see three super muscled guys grinning. As much as he was enraged by the “midget” comment, those guys seemed so strong, probably soldiers on leave by the look of their spotless uniforms: he could barely resist the instinct of running away. 

He smiled, truly happy: that was exactly what he was looking for. 

He remembered what Noya-senpai always did when challenged and how cool he seemed so, jumping on his feet, he said: “T-that's me! A-are you h-here to challenge a l-li-living l-legend? Ah aha-ah-aha! Y-you have no chance a-against me and my Rolling Thunder!”

Hinata cringed on the inside: that wasn't cool at all! He stuttered! His laugh was just so nervous! And he didn't even know how to do a Rolling Thunder, only Noya-senpai could! How he wished to be buried alive in that moment! 

It wasn't his fault, those guys seemed just so strong he wanted to fight them! 

The three laughed at him “Well guys, seems like it's gonna be easier than expected!” The laughs only grew and the crowd gathered around joined in, making Shouyou redden all over in shame.

The stronger looking one stepped forward: “I'll go first! Let's end this quickly” he said cracking his knuckles. Hinata could just nod, still red in the face, before unsheathing his sword. 

The opponent looked back to his friends with a smirk and a wink, before turning to Hinata. 

And then the duel started. 

In one second the orange-haired boy was mid-air, jumping higher than his opponent's head aiming a stinging blow to the other one's neck. The taller man eyes widened as he tried to dodge him, moving too slowly and ending up that with his left arm heavily injured.

Hinata landed gracefully and swiftly threw his leg out toward the ankle of the man, who lifted his foot to stomp on it. Before he could however, Hinata's foot changed its trajectory, aiming higher and hitting the already wounded arm. As his opponent screamed in pain, the boy kicked the ground and lifted himself out of his reach. 

The two opponents studied each other, walking in a circle, the man breath was ragged and heavy, one hand held his sword high in front of him, the other one stayed limp to his side. Shouyou's eyes were quite frightening while he scanned for every fault in the defense of the brawny man, who on the other side was still processing the unexpected ability this little guy possessed. 

He wasn't stupid, he knew that the boy's reputation didn't build itself overnight, he already expected to face a strong and unpredictable opponent, yet the didn't expect him to be more intimidating than any demon he ever faced, not with that height and the shy behavior from before. 

He looked up to see the worried faces of his friends, and he breathed in trying to calm himself down, he couldn't lose in front of them, it didn't matter how scary or fast, that was still just a boy,… a child with a sword: he could do it!

He charged: in two seconds Hinata was under his raised arm, his sword piercing trough the opponent's side. 

The man cried in agony, falling onto the floor, a hand pressed on the wound, already weakened by the previous blood loss, while his friends tried to gathered around him to provide some help. 

Hinata lifted a hand to stop them from nearing, and no one dared to defy his unspoken order. He looked at the wounded man in the eyes: “The duel is still going on until you yield, they can't help you 'til then” 

The man grunted in pain “I yield, you fucking monster-child”

The cool demeanor he kept during the fight suddenly dropped as Hinata smiled happily: he knew that monster-child wasn't properly a compliment, but it still meant the man recognized his value as a fighter! 

Still smiling he challenged the crowd, while the defeated opponent was being carried away: “Anyone else?! Don't be shy, who wants to challenge this monster-child?” Ok he could admit the name kinda grew on him, he would have to thank that guy later.

“No one? No one at all?” he asked a bit disappointed: he thought he had been good, if so, why wasn't there anyone who thrived to challenge him? 

The audience was still quiet, anyone actually too terrified to fight that little guy.

“I will” said a voice in the middle of the crowd. 

When everyone moved out of the way Hinata could see a broad man, not as tall as the other one but with wider shoulders covered in an ink black coat. He had one of the biggest swords Hinata ever saw, so he must have been really strong to wield it, and last but not least his head was covered by a hood that covered his face: All in all a mystery.

Hinata shivered in excitement, he loved mysteries!

<°> <°> <°> <°> <°> <°>

Shouyou could still remember being nothing but an orphan, one of the many abandoned children sleeping in the dirty alleys of Kitagawa, dressed with nothing but a ragged cloth in the snow, eating only whatever he could steal and defend from others suffering his same situation.

For years he resented not being able to remember what a family felt like: a kind smile, or a warm hug, like the ones some of the boys who slept near him talked about in the freezing winter nights, when memories were the only thing that could keep someone warm. 

The first time Hinata felt warm inside was when Noya-senpai e Tanaka-senpai took him in to train him. He got to know what a family was for the first time and he loved it.

It was a quite unconventional family if he were to speak truthfully: the two kept talking  
about their imaginary goddess and queen, Kiyoko-san, they lived on the top of a mountain off of which they could go only once every year, for some inviolable rule and had people coming from everywhere only to challenge them, but it was family.

More importantly they taught Hinata an everlasting truth: the strong thrives and the weak endure.

“Aim to the top and never under because defeat should never be an option, if you fail you try again. However you should never blame your enemies for being stronger, you should just learn from them and then challenge them again and again and again, til you win, and then wait for them to do the same, this way you both keep getting stronger! Isn't that awesome?!” would always say Noya-senpai, with his best friend nodding with a rare serious face behind him 

“Right, right, you lose only if you give up, until then is just a... rescheduling” 

“You sure you are not just saying that for the many 'rescheduling' you had with Ennoshita?” 

“Noya!!”

Hinata's senpai always held a special place in his heart: he always followed their instruction, from the rare wise life lessons, to the cooking recipes involving venomous insects.

His search for more power brought him to Kageyama, who helped him uniting his natural abilities with actual combat skills, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi, Kenma and now to this man.

The guy defeated him in less than ten movements, without even letting his hood fall, his sword range was so large that Shouyou couldn't even get near without risking to lose his head and his skills so well refined he reminded him of Asahi-san, the monk that lived near the senpai and also one of the most powerful and experienced warrior Hinata knew.

Hinata's eyes shone brightly when his back collided whit the street, the opponent's sword to his neck, quite startling the other one who definitely didn't expect that reaction.

Three seconds later the red-haired guy was holding in his hands the, definitely bigger one of the winner while he pleaded whit an excited voice : “Come with us! You definitely gotta teach me how you did that! It was just soo cool! Like SWOOOSHH and BOOOM and then GWAAA! Come, come, come, you absolutely have to! Just wait til you meet the others, they gonna love you! Except maybe Kenma, he doesn't trust people,.... and maybe Tsukishima, but he is just salty, and Yamaguchi will just agree with him I guess.... but at least Kag... Tobio is gonna love you for sure, you gotta beat him though or that would prove he is stronger than me and I can't have that...” 

Kunimi raised his eyebrows overwhelmed by the sudden multitude of words dumped on him. 

“What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear that at some point everything is gonna become clear, for now though I guess you could be kinda confused.  
> If you wanna comment or leave kudos please do, even criticism as long as it is politly expressed is more than welcome.  
> I wanna get better as much as you want me to so... tell me if there is any mistake, I usually check twice but you never know.  
> Asfor the next chapter... se you in Jannuary I guess... maybe


	3. A King's Might

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Tooru”
> 
> At the far end of the lawn was a demon dressed in red and black with the emblem of the Nekoma Clan sewn into his cloak, a mocking smile on his face and terribly styled black hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm late (as usual)  
> I promise that for the next chapter I will not be and also that in the end the story will make some sense, just wait a little.  
> I know right now it probably doesn't, but FEAR NOT FOR I HAVE A PLAN... more or less.  
> Next chapter however will be the start of the true story.  
> For now just enjoy the chaos and angst (～￣▽￣)～  
> Poitre_4

Three months before:

_Oikawa wasn't used to that feeling, the cold chill down his spine had been for so long forgotten that now it felt weird, but he could still remember it from earlier days: it was fear._

_He shut his eyes close and collapsed on his knees, the walls of the throne room suddenly felt threatening, squeezing his heart in a painful grip. The throne was empty, covered in blood that was pouring out of a rusty crown. All around him invisible people were screaming in fear, and every scream was a knife in his head, already heavy and pained. The noise kept growing louder and louder 'til he thought that he would have gone insane at any moment._

_Then it stopped altogether._

_Oikawa didn't dare to lift his gaze, still shivering, until a soft voice called him from up the stairs that brought to the throne._

“ _Tooru”_

_Tooru's head shot up at that, his eyes full of wonder as they landed on the figure sat on the overpriced chair._

_A beautiful demon all in all similar to the one knelt in front of her except for her blue eyes grinned down at him. “Mom?” asked the boy, suddenly looking like his five years old self._

_The woman laughed with the same charm that years before was able to enthrall a whole room and sweetly mocked him “Has it passed so much time that you fail to recognize your own mother To-chan?”_

_The little Tooru ran up to his mother circling her waist with his tiny arms, seeking protection in her embrace like he never failed to receive before her death._

_The queen had always been so much more than what the public gave her credit for._

_To the peasants she was a pretty face with little to no brain who served no purpose if not to give the king a rightful heir, but any noble demon who had the right to call himself so knew never to enrage her. No one knew what would happen if they were to because no one ever even tried. Tooru could remember her telling him that she had actually little to no power, being an inferior demon, but she knew how to be feared nonetheless._

_To her son she was more like a distant memory, a dream that he couldn't quite place. He could remember her everlasting smile, always plastered on her face, be it that she was drinking tea in the garden or tearing someone's reputation apart, the smile remained and Tooru could gladly claim it a genetic trait that passed onto him._

_When she died Tooru was devastated: he ran away, never stopping til he got out of the city, into the woods._

_When he heard the bells ringing out to announce his disappearance, he opened a portal to the Human Dimension, becoming one of the youngest noble demon to ever learn how to, and ran into an unknown forest._

_It was the day he met Iwa-chan._

_The boy, once he found out the weird guy in front of him was a demon, instead of running away, bullied him into opening another portal, hitting him with a stick every time he got it wrong, and then brought him home._

_Tooru hugged his mother waist tighter, making her bursting into giggles “You missed me much didn't you?” he nodded frenetically “Oh I missed you too! Soooooo much!” she laughed hugging him tight and shaking him side to side making him squirm and giggle. “Aw my To-chan is all the way grown! Look at him! He is a king now! And not any king: The Grand King of Demons!” little Tooru shook his head blushing “Mooooom stop, it's embarrassing!” The woman pouted “Who knows if he still thinks of this old whithered woman” the boy placed his chubby hands on her cheeks nodding with a smile “I do, I do!” she smiled softly patting his head, “Of course you do”_

_She sat down on the throne, a smile still on her lips, but her composure more serious. Tooru knelt beside her placing his head on her knees while she passed the hand through his hair._

“ _Do you still remember even what I taught you?”_

_Tooru nodded slowly, suddenly tired_

_She smiled down at him before stating: “As a king you only have two choices: either to be feared or to be loved! No monarch can establish his power otherwise. Of course you got to be righteous, but you get to chose how. You have to remember anyway that there is one main difference between love and fear: you see, the great thing about love is that everyone loves in their own special way and for different reasons, but everyone will fear you in your way.”_

_Tooru drank in every single word like a man dying of thirst_

“ _Love is such a beautiful thing Tooru, but is terribly fickle: you can try your whole life to be loved just to be hated and betrayed in the moment you try to do what's right going against the immediate interest of your subjects. In the end trying to rule with love will just give your subjects power over your actions clouding your judgment. Fear on the other side is a far more powerful weapon, you can use it to control enemies and allies alike without anyone else's opinion coming in between you and your goal. Just be careful, To-chan, fear is not to be used in excess, you have to make it clear that as long as they don't defy you, your subjects are save from all the evil. If they start thinking that you are unstably dangerous they will begin to riot and to attempt taking your crown. Do you remember this Tooru?”_

_Tooru nodded again looking down to the floor down the stairs. Of course he remembered, he remembered its every word by heart: it was one of the few things his mother taught him about his position as an heir, how could he forget it?_

_Her hand tightened in his hair pulling painfully_

“ _Then you care to explain what the fuck you are doing shittykawa?!?!”_

_Oikawa, a grown up demon again, was forced to look up only to see two surprisingly green eyes staring down at him with an undying rage._

“ _I-Iwa-chan?” he managed to blabber before the man stood up throwing him down the stairs nearly pulling his hair out._

_While he rolled down the stairs he could hear his ex-first knight's words, like daggers deep in his bones._

“ _You are nothing but a monster! You destroyed this kingdom! This whole dimension! The dimension we both swore to protect! And for what? Power? Entertainment? Fuck you Oikawa! You and your blood lust can go to hell!_

_You are not and never will be my king!”_

_When Oikawa landed on the floor he looked up just to see the disgusted face of the warrior while he threw a familiar yellow-red stone on the floor, breaking it in half. As the Dragon-eye Stone shattered new voices started to fill the empty room, tearing down his pride piece by piece._

“ _Is that supposed to be a king? Pathetic!”_

“ _That's the Grand King? That one?! Weak”_

“ _Look how pitiful he is!”_

“ _Look how miserable!”_

“ _Who could fear a king like this?”_

“ _Who could love him?”_

Oikawa shot up, his eyes darting around the room, sweat drenching his clothes. The furniture of his bedroom had been devastated and the air itself was pregnant of the remains of dark magic. As he looked around his reflection on a shred of the mirror still hanging on its frame caught his eye. His horns had doubled in size, the visible skin was red and in some points it was peeling of is face to reveal the rock hard demon skin underneath, his eyes were similar to a snake one's and his black wings, usually neatly folded behind him were spread til they touched the walls: his monster-self was revealing.

It wasn't so uncommon of one's inner magic to be exposed sometimes, furthermore in a stressful situation, and it wasn't like he couldn't go back to normal in less than a second but in that moment, looking at the image on the mirror with wide, horrified eyes, the only thought passing through Oikawa's head was:

is this what made Iwa-chan leave?

<°> <°> <°> <°> <°> <°>

Iwaizumi was tired, tired as hell.

Ever since the little brat, who he had understood was called Hinata, had dragged him against his will into that madhouse, he had done nothing but run into one problem after another.

First of all he had had to bear pudding-head's killer look for hours while Hinata recounted Hajime's "heroic deeds", and as much as he would never admit it, that look scared him enough to make him lie about his name, also because the name of the fir... ex-first knight of the Great Demon King was quite well known.

Then, once the cat-like mage was gone, with the excuse of finding some wood for the fire, a ridiculous excuse, according to Hajime, since it was far too late to worry about that, it fell to the tall, blond, four-eyed guy to scrutinize him suspiciously.

All this with the incessant chatter, complete with sound effects and which had been going on for at least two hours, about the already legendary duel that lasted of up to ten minutes , in the background.

The only, fairly normal person there was the green-haired painter, who patiently listened to Hinata's speech, only adding occasionally a “That's fantastic! Isn't that right Tsukki?" while the so-called "Tsukki" just grunted in answer, continuing to stare at Iwaizumi, who was now feeling quite uncomfortable.

He found his only distraction in the canvas placed in front of Yamaguchi, so the painter seemed to be called, who in fact, despite paying attention to the noisy chatter, did not take his eyes off the painting he was working on.

The subject itself was nothing particular: a girl who laughed happily, her short hair blonde like wheat, her eyes half closed from the sunlight that shone on her face, as if she were there in front of them and not just created by the fantasy of the author.

The strangest detail, however, was given by the various canvases scattered around the small cottage: from what Hinata had told him, never stopping his tongue for the whole trip, they had only been in that house for less than two months and yet it was covered wall to wall in countless paintings, all depicting the same girl in various phases of her life: from a little girl soiled with jam with a mischievous smile, to a young woman in armor with a sweet and shy blush on her cheeks.

Hajime was seized with curiosity and interrupting the fifth description of the duel, a speech that Hinata liked to make more and more lively and absurd each time, he asked: "Who's she?"

The silence fell, Hinata was frozen, his eyes widened, the look, already unfriendly, of Tsukishima became even more hostile and Iwaizumi feared for a moment that he had heavily insulted someone with that question and was ready to apologize but Yamaguchi just smiled calmly.

“She was a childhood friend of ours, mine and Tsukki's, we had known each other for years, she was called Yachi. She died last year. I ... I only know that it has been a demon, nothing more "

Then Yamaguchi quietly returned to his painting, lowering his head just a little so as not to show his teary eyes.

Iwaizumi at that moment really wanted the ground to open up to swallow him. "I ... I'm sorry I didn't have to ask"

Yamaguchi just shook his head without looking up and added a little red detail to the poppies in the girl's hands.

Nobody dared to speak for a while and the silence was lingering uncomfortably. No one was surprised then when it was Hinata who broke it, not bearing the heavy atmosphere anymore.

"Where's Kenma? It's not like him to stay out this much"

Tsukishima seemed to want to continue glaring at Hajime but noticing that Yamaguchi was uncomfortable with that sour silence she sighed and indulged Hinata's attempt to make conversation.

"Or to get out entirely for what matters"

"Don't be mean Tsukki"

"It's Tsukishima for you, short stuff"

"WHO DID YOU CALL SHORT STUFF?"

At that moment a blow that barely missed the house made everything tremble. They looked at each other worriedly and then rushed to the window only to see the courtyard on fire.

In the flames no human weapon could be noticed, Iwaizumi stiffed: such an attack could only be the work of a demon or a mage, his first thought was: _Oh no Oikawa found me_ , his first instinct to flee.

Suddenly a familiar voice from outside stopped him in his tracks.

"Come out NOW, or the next one won't miss the mark!"

The four men came out hesitantly, weapons in hand, ready to fight.

At the far end of the lawn was a demon dressed in red and black with the emblem of the Nekoma Clan sewn into his cloak, a mocking smile on his face and terribly styled black hair.

A shiver of fear made the house inhabitants tremble when they recognized their enemy: even among humans the kings of the seven Demonic Clans at the service of the Grand King were well known and feared, they were said to be second in power only to the unnameable Demon King himself and of them all, even if Kuroo Tetsurou was not the strongest he was certainly the most cruel.

Iwaizumi watched the demon's gaze linger on him and understood what had brought him this far. He immediately closed his eyes, desperately looking for a way to avoid three innocent victims in the inevitable confrontation to come, but Kuroo hadn't come to satisfy his blood thirst this time.

Raising a finger majestically, and a bit mockingly, he smiled pointing at his dear ex-commander.

“You! You will come with me, I have an important message to report"

Iwaizumi's eyes widened in surprise as Hinata's almost popped out of his head, Yamaguchi simply frowned in concern, and Tsukishima watched the group's newcomer with growing suspicion.

"If I come, do you swear that you will not touch them or the house?"

Kuroo raised an eyebrow, probably puzzled as to why Iwaizumi cared so much about the house but in any case he promised. Actually Hajime still felt guilty for the paintings accident and wanted at least to redeem himself by avoiding their destruction, it's not as if he could just ignore a threat from a demon king anyway.

Before setting off, with Iwaizumi following right behind him, into the forest, Kuroo turned to give a final warning, without ever letting the smile fall off his face, to the adventurers, specifically looking Tsukishima in the eye.

"If anyone gets brave and thinks about following us, Kenma Kozume will become fancy food for my three-tailed tigers. Hope I was clear enough"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I kill Yachi off without even an introduction? Yes I did  
> Am I sorry? Completely  
> Would I do it again? Sadly yes  
> Sorry y'all I had an idea for Tsukiyama and just HAD to kill her off (┬┬﹏┬┬)  
> And Oikawa's angst is a must, sorry not sorry.  
> Poitre_4


	4. Long Live the King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I came here to ask for your help”
> 
> "I know where Kenma is"
> 
> "Aoba Johsai"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello There,  
> This chapter is a tiny bit longer than usual and is pretty much only dialogs so, I'm sorry if it is a bit boring but it is quite important  
> School is killing me so I'm not sure whether I'll make it, but I'll try to update more often because I counted how many chapters I'll have to write and I would need to go on for another two years at the current speed.  
> With that being said I hope you'll like this chapter  
> Poitre4

Iwaizumi followed Kuroo to an old oak tree in the middle of the forest. He wasn't really scared: if Kuroo wanted him dead he wouldn't have needed to avoid witnesses, on the contrary he was quite famous for never killing without an audience for some unknown reason.

When Kuroo turned around, his back pressed to the tree, his red eyes were shining, a grin elegantly placed on his lips, a relaxed posture, like a panther studying his pray.

“Do you know why I'm here _General?_ ”

The shorter man gritted his teeth at the obviously sarcastic title.

“I don't wanna assume, _My Lord_ ”

Kuroo's grin slightly widened at the remark. Back in the days he and Iwaizumi had a good relationship, based mainly on a continuous banter that was the main source entertainment of the castle guards and a major headache for everyone else. It wasn't uncommon for them to use their titles in their mocking game but now the ice behind the words was quite more real and much more cruel.

“You never change it seems. Loyalty on the side” Iwaizumi frowned _So this is how you wanna play it?_

“My loyalty is not to a crown but to a code of morality, not everyone is cut out for the role of the obedient guard-dog”

Kuroo took the insult to heart, being his clan's coat of arms a wild cat, he despised dogs with his whole heart.

“Weird I used to think that not betraying a friendship was part of your precious code”

Now every facsimile of an elegant posture left both of the men leaving them like animals, ready to jump at each other's neck at any moment.

“It depends on what you consider betrayal, I used to believe that killing my whole family was part of the category, it surprised me to see you had a different opinion”

“I did what I deemed necessary y-”

“So did I!”

In the end they were both panting and screaming, fury burning into their eyes. Kuroo passed a hand through his hair and took a deep breath.

“I did not come here to discuss you mistake”

If Iwaizumi had something to say about this definition, Kuroo's glance shut him up.

“I came here to ask for your help”

Hajime frowned: Tetsuro rarely ever admitted to need someone's help and if he ever were to, Iwaizumi would have been his last choice.

“What?!”

“Shut up! I don't like it either”

Iwaizumi sighed and sat down: it seemed like the beginning of long story

“Everything started when you left, 'Kawa was restless, he looked for you in every corner of both dimensions, at some point, since we still couldn't find you we though you were dead or something. I gotta give it to you, you sure know how to hide your tracks, I was only able to locate you now because... well it's not important.

This went on for two months, he didn't sleep or eat nor he cared for anything except finding you, he overlooked the war, the bureaucracy, everything! We were all really worried, we needed a strong king, we still do.

Then everything suddenly got worse and...”

Kuroo bit his lips studying Iwaizumi. Hajime was sitting on the grass, eyes downcast in thought, his face was dark, a bit scary if he were to tell the truth, but as he heard Kuroo stopping he lifted his head expectantly.

Kuroo sighed, he didn't have a choice.

“What I'm going to tell you...

Shit, I might be killed for this

I don't trust you... not anymore and I don't like you either but I need to believe that you still care for Oikawa enough not to use this against him”

“I do!” shouted Iwaizumi before shutting his mouth quite puzzled, he... did? He was on the opposite side now, how could he promise not to reveal what seemed like a fundamental information for the human victory?

Kuroo however, turning a blind eye to Iwaizumi dilemma took his earnest response as an agreement, not that he had any choice anyway

“He got sick, like, really sick.

His magic is dying slowly and soon it will become a problem”

Iwaizumi frowned again “Why should I care? If his magic disappears then maybe he'll go back to normal”

Kuroo glared at him “Normal? When did he ever correspond to your idea of normal? He always had his magic, it's not an optional for a demon! Magic takes form into demons, the demons ARE their magic, without it he'll die!”

Hajime's eye widened. It's not like he didn't know that, he just never thought about how demons being magic meant they couldn't live without it.

“That's only IF he survives long enough to die of magic deficiency! For now his illness is a well kept secret but it won't be for long! The Oikawa's have been Grand Kings for centuries because of their great magic skills and strength but their power is not absolute nor everlasting: although no one has risked asking for a Royal Duel in generations, it doesn't mean that they can't.

  
Every Demon King of the Seven Clans have the right to challenge the current Grand King to the death for the throne, and even if some of us are loyal to Oikawa for more than just his power not everyone is. For now the only ones knowing of Oikawa's illness are me and Bokuto, although knowing Bokuto it's safe to assume that Akaashi knows too but we can't keep it hidden forever and there are people who should never know!”

Iwaizumi nodded, a dead serious look on his face, the same one he had when he tried to come up with new battle strategies back in the days

“Ushijima Wakatoshi”

Kuroo nodded.

“Good to see you still remember something.

The war is destroying Shiratorizawa's fields and the whole Clan is suffering for the famine and the poverty, he tried to convince Oikawa in many ways to stop the conquer, god the man even asked for his hand in marriage to help his people! He is nearly as strong as Oikawa, if he were to know that the Grand King weakened he wouldn't hesitate in challenging him to a Royal Duel”

Hajime felt sick, he didn't know what to think, he couldn't blame Wakatoshi for trying to save his people but the idea of Oikawa dying by his hand made his blood boil.

“Even so, what am I do to? I'm not a doctor”

“That's the point! We called Sakusa to check on him but he couldn't find anything strange with him, just a normal dysfunction in his magic, probably caused by the stress he was put under, but a demon, moreover a royal one should be able to fix his own magic dysfunctions... unless they don't want to”

Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow surprised and concerned: “You think he is killing himself?!”

“NO! No, just... he isn't healing himself. Demon magic is not always linked to our consciousness, sometimes it just follows the passions, for this reason we always have to be connected to our emotions and cannot suppress them! Now let's say that a demon has been told by a really close friend that their magic is monstrous, willingly or not they will refuse it in part which can cause an involuntary dysfunction”

Iwaizumi had plenty of questions on the argument but decided to trust the almighty knowledge of the Nekoma Clan.

“It still doesn't explain my part in all of this”

“Well if you were to come to the castle maybe he will find his will to live again!”

Iwaizumi stiffed with horror in his eyes

“NO! I will not get back there!”

Kuroo sighed and looked down moping

“I was afraid you'd say so, this is why I kidnapped the kid, now you have no other choice than to come get him, after all he was put in danger 'cause of you, isn't saving him what a knight is supposed to do?”

Hajime knew that Kuroo was right, he couldn't leave the guy with those demons, he would have been killed when he wasn't useful anymore, and Iwaizumi did not intend to be the reason of another innocent death.

“Where is he?”

The demon smirked

“You know where”

Iwaizumi nodded despondent, obviously he knew.

“Ok then, consider me convinced: we can go now, just let me tell Kenma's companions that he is coming back soon, before opening one of yours stomach wrenching portals”

Kuroo shook his head “You have been banned”

The human froze, that he didn't expect.

“When he got sick, after breaking half of the furniture in his room in an attack of dark magic he went feral and ordered to ban you from the entire dimension, was I to open a portal you wouldn't be able to pass”

“How do you expect me to save him like this?”

“I told you his magic got weak lately, it's already been three months, even though he is still powerful he can't control everything anymore...”

Iwaizumi finally understood:

“The Seven Immortal Mirrors of The Demons Clans, they have been always open since the beginning of time, they are difficult to control when he has full control on his powers he can't control all of them now!”

Kuroo nodded again “The nearest Clans from here should be Fukorodani or Karasuno although Kiyoko might just kill you if she was to see you, she took quite at heart your... departure, I'd let you pass from Nekoma but it's too close to Oikawa for it to work”

Iwaizumi closed his eyes and massaged his temples trying to find a solution, when he opened them again the demon had disappeared. He sighed and decided to go back to the three guys he left behind, it seemed like finding Kenma wouldn't be easy as planned and they deserved to know at least that.

In the shadows two figures watched him go.

“Bro, are you sure about this?”

“Not really”

“Do you think he won't come in the end? I mean he doesn't even know this Kenma guy that well!”

“What? Of course not! Kidnapping Kenma just helped him taking a decision faster he would have come anyway in the end.”

“So kidnapping the guy wasn't necessary? Why did you do it then? It's so unlike you!”

“No reason, I felt like it”

“...”

“...”

“How did you know I told Akaashi?”

“I know you Bo”

<°> <°> <°> <°> <°> <°>

Hinata was sitting on a the grass nervously playing with a green stem while glancing at the limits of the forest any now and then to control if Kunimi-San was anywhere in sight just to sigh when nothing but trees and bushes appeared in front of him. Tsukishima rolled his eyes ready to trow some sneaky remark at the next sigh, just to shake off some of the nervousness that was tearing him apart, when he noticed a figure exiting the woods. Seeing Tsukishima jumping on his feet both his companions looked up to see Kunimi approaching.

“Kunimi-San! Why was he here? Did he really kidnapped Kenma? He didn't kill him right? Right?!”

Iwaizumi was quite dumbfounded when confronted with the over energetic boy and woke up from the daze in which he fell during the return, realizing only then that he exited the forest without noticing it and, more importantly, without figuring out a plan.

“I-I...”

“He did?....” Hinata's face was scary now, exactly like it was when he fought in the square the morning before “If he dared...”

This got Iwaizumi back to reality “NO! No no, Kenma is still alive, or so he said, but he wouldn't gain anything from lying about it”

“Why is that?” Asked Tsukishima, walking up to them, his eyes narrowed with suspicion “What did he want? And why did he call only you, out of everyone? Do you know him?”

“Tsukki maybe we should calm down and let him sit before questioning him?”

“Shut up Yamaguchi”

“Sorry Tsukki”

However, Tsukishima did comply to his friend request and back down from his interrogation, gesturing towards the house to Hajime

“Please be our guest... again”

Iwaizumi lowered his head in thanks, while his brain run fast to try and find an excuse for everything that had happened, telling the truth was out of question, he needed this people to trust him and more importantly, he couldn't talk about Oikawa's situation to someone who could use it to hurt him. He shook his head trying to deny the implications of his concern, he didn't need to feel guilty right now.

As they entered the cottage Hinata sat down looking at him whit sparkling eyes ready to hear what happened. Yamaguchi smiled at him apologetically seeing his bestfriend's suspicious gaze pointed at the newcomer.

Iwaizumi decided to start with as much truth as he could reveal.

“The good news is that I know where Kenma is”

Hinata overjoyed at this: “This is great! This means we can save him”

“That's the bad news: he is kept at the capital”

Tsukishima's eyes widened in shock and Yamaguchi sat down feeling dizzy at the news. Hinata looked around confused “You mean Kitagawa?”

Iwaizumi shook his head “Aoba Johsai”

The name sent a shiver down every spine in the room be it from memories, bad or maybe to good to be remembered without a sense of nostalgia, or from the horrifying stories surrounding the place. Hinata blinked twice before whispering “The demon capital? Like... directly into the Great King's den?”

Hajime nodded

“This is even better!”

Everyone looked at Hinata like he grew a second head

“I mean Kunimi-san just said that they wouldn't hurt him right? So he is safe and we get to fight with the strongest demons in the whole worlds to get him! It will be awesome! And Kunimi-san might just teach me something on the way! I can't wait to become stronger!”

Yamaguchi looked at his friend with something akin to pride, the little guy was so much braver than anyone else he knew, he couldn't help but notice how similar he was to her, to Yachi, with a smile he told himself that he wouldn't be any less

“Shouyou is right! Kenma would do the same for us!”

Tsukishima looked at him, his eyes full of betrayal, he had no intention whatsoever to do something so stupid as entering the demon world just for some white mage's sake and he strongly doubted that Kenma would have done something similar for anyone... maybe for Hinata but that was it. Yet now he couldn't let Yamaguchi go alone with an idiot and a super dark and questionable man, so now he had been roped in the stupidest rescue mission ever!

If he had to go however he needed to know the whole truth!

“This is nice and everything but you still haven't answered my questions: Why did he kidnap Kenma? Why does he want us to go in... the demon capital? Why did he call only you? Do you know him? What are you hiding?”

Iwaizumi knew these questions would come at some point, but he really wished they didn't, before he could answer however, Hinata jumped into the conversation.

“Tsukki! I thought you were supposed to be the smart one! Even I know why! It's probably because of Kageyama!”

Tsukishima really wanted to smash his head into a door at this point. He too thought that Kageyama might be the reason but was waiting for Kunimi to say it himself, just to be sure that he could trust him but now the idiot outed them in front of him and gave him the perfect chance to cover whatever dark secret he had.

“Kageyama? You mean the king?”

Hinata tilted his head to the side “Yes isn't it the reason? That Kageyama is on our team? I told you about him before, although I only ever called him Tobio because his presence here is a... secret” Hinata seemed to realize his mistake by the end of his sentence looking at his shoes in shame.

“Yeah a secret that you just outed, idiot!” said Tsukishima, quite upset by the situation, then he turned towards Iwaizumi “Although I guess that wasn't the reason since our new teammate over here seems so shocked by the news, didn't you already know it?”

Iwaizumi internally cursed for the missed chance “I mean... he did say something about “someone of royal blood that better be there”” he made up, relying on Hinata's love for mysterious looking sentences and challenges to cover up his slip up.

“That's Kageyama! I mean he is only a prince but still blue-blooded. It's a trap for him! I bet they won't give us Kenma unless Bakeyama is with us! Sooooooo cool!”

Tsukishima sighed, far from convinced “Why attacking when Kageyama is absent then? And why calling the only one who isn't part of this team to report the message?”

Once again Iwaizumi was saved by Hinata's loud mouth who was having too much fun acting like the smart one for once, he really needed to repay the guy somehow “Come on Tsukki how was he supposed to know which is Kageyama or if he was here? And probably Kunimi-san looks so cool that he thought that he certainly was the boss!”

The tall boy wasn't going to let this slide so easily, there are many, many, MANY, ways for a demon to know something, but just as he was about to open his mouth Yamaguchi spoke up.

“Right now we don't need to point the blame or make wild accusations, we need to save Kenma! If what Hinata and Kunimi said is true, then we have to wait for Kageyama to return, but having time doesn't mean that we can slack off, we ought to make preparations for the travel, discuss the logistics of it, along with the route and the schedule, there is so much to do, we need to start immediately. Being the vice-captain I'm in command whenever Kenma-san is absent, with that being said we will not turn against each other, not now! Kunimi-san I know that it's a lot to ask but Hinata is our stronger warrior right now, only Kageyama is at his level among us, if you are as strong as he claims, please consider joining our team! I do not expect you to accept since you know nothing of us or Kenma but I do hope that you will lend us a helping hand”

Iwaizumi was more than surprised discovering this new imperative side of the man and for a few seconds was stunned into silence before he managed to exclaim “Of course! I'll come, you don't have to worry”

Tsukishima narrowed his eyes looking at the older man with suspicion once again, he was a bit too much enthusiastic in signing his life away for a stranger, he tried to focus on that to ignore the overflowing pride swelling in his chest in front of Yamaguchi's show of moral and mental strength.

As Hinata quickly bowed two and three times to his commander with a newfound respect muttering underneath his breath “So cool, Yamaguchi, so cool!” Iwaizumi got up and sighed, the journey, considered the would have to travel to either Karasuno's Mirror or Fukurodani's one before heading to Aoba Johsai, would take at least a month, he better get ready hoping to get there in time.

For Kenma of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo  
> That was... something, Tsukishima is being a Tsundere and so is Iwaizumi, Hinata is being likee super duper positive and keeping the spirit high so basically nothing new.  
> We got our favourite owl on the scene for like two seconds, just because I love him too much and that's it.  
> If you liked it let me now and constructive criticism is always accepted!  
> Thank you for reading!  
> Poitre4

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo  
> I didn't plan the argument at the beginning but I figured that leaving without confronting your best friend would be an asshole move and I guess I also needed to explain a bit so had to stab my own heart and adding the angsty fight.  
> And yeah, if you are asking, I'm a masochist: I loved every second of it ( •̀ ω •́ )✧  
> I don't actually know when I will be able to update, I'm afraid it won't be regularly: I don't have the patience for that, but if I feel like it, which I usually don't, (I'm terrible with deadlines) probably once a month, even because I reread like fifty times before posting.  
> Just let me know if you like it, i would really appreciate it, i need a good doseof self-confidence once in a while.  
> Poitre4


End file.
